The Memphis appeal. [volume] (Memphis, Tenn.) 1886-1890, 1887-05-15
COSTLY STAGE FEVER.
AMATEURS HHO PAY TO APPEAR
AnOyG PROFESSIONALS.
They Spend Large Sans on Cos.
tunes and Get Their Friends 70
PatrOnize the heater.

who played minor r0le-she had
barely ten lines to speak-dressed
the part very richly. Her costume
was a perfect fit, aud of rich ma
terial; and she wore superb jewelry.
The part was that Of a court lady,
and the rich dressing of the charac-
ter was no. inappropriate. But |
wondered how the manager could at
ford to furnish 80 expensive cos
tune for a minor role. Happening
in his Office soon afterward, / asked
him how much the dress had cost
him.
Not one cent" he replied.
Was it her ownf"
yes; and the magnificent jewels
she wore were alss her own"
And what magnificent sum does
she draw as q salary that she should
be able to dress 80 superbly9
mot one cent. On the contrary,
she pays me ten dollars every night
she appears
That is to say she furnishes her
own dresses and pays you salaryW
Exactly. She is rich woman
who is stage struck, and is therefore
willing to pay nae for the privilege of
appearing on my stage"
IF there were many women like
her the manager of 6rst class thea
ter would always count on at least
one source of income. Even an I'M
successlul play wouldn't be wholly
Improbable. But l suppose such
women are few in number2"
"Look here" said the manager,
opening a book and turaing over sew
eral pages covered with names and
addresses. "There are some fifty
people, all OF them willing to act for
nothing, and the majority of them
so anxious to appear on the stage
that they are ready TO reverse mat
ters and pay me q salary during the
time they al pear at my theater."
80 that if you could gil your cast
with those willing to pay you, you
could make small fortune every
night"
come to see them act. But I'm
afraid the audiences would be so
slim that these rich amateurs would
no longer consider it a privilege to
play at my thester."
" Then you wouldn't risk casting
any of them for leading role2"
mot for all their wealth. But the
beauty of this little arrangement is
that these people ale not over ambi-
tious. Give woman of this class a
character which requires rich dress
ing and she is satisfied, even If she
has but few lines to speak or only
stands among the super ladies. 1t is
very easy matter to suit them.
Many small parts, you know, are for
court ladies and the like. They have
to be expensively dressed. These
are'what my amateur ladies delight in.
I'll give you q case in point. The
last play but one had a seven line
part which had to be richly
dressed. suppose the costume OF
tho amateur who play I'D it must have
cost $1,000 or more, for it was from
Worth, aud she must have worn
thousands of dollars worth of jew
elry. She came to the theater every
night in a private carriage, went on
the stage, got off her seven lines and
drove away. Now calculate the ad-
vantage to me of employing her
She paid me for coaching her in her
part couple OF weeks before we put
the play on. was on a regular sal
airy from her while the play ran, she
saved me the: expense Of buying a
costume, and, after all, she did the
part better than most of the profess
SIGNALS | could have got for $25 a
week"
But aren't these advantages off
set by the trouble OF drilling them?"
why, they don't give me so much
trouble as professionals. They're as
plablc as putty. Even when they
pay me in good round sums they
consider I'm doing them such a
favor in allowing them to appear
with my company that they are ready
to comply with every request and
dare not air any notions OF their
own.
Are they so anxious to act that
they offer of their own accord to pay
you for the privilege"
at usually comes about az it did
yesterday. A good looking girl came
here with her mother. They hest
tated and looked at each other as il
each wanted the other to spesk first,
and then the moth,r asked me if |
couldn't give her daughter chance
to appear in small parts | told them
| was sorry, but my salary list was
full. oh, she doesn't want q salary,
exclaimed tho mother. We're will
ing to pay for the privilege of having
her appear on your stage, She men
toned a good sum, aud I've put il
down opposite her name. think Of
sending for her for our next pro.
duction. There's ten line part in
the play we're about putting in re.
hearsal that ought to be dressed well
so | think she'll suit.
"Will you have other amateurs il
the same playY
~ will have a young fellow, but NJ
other girl You can't very we'll en-
ploy more than one of these amateur
women in a play, because while the!
are contented to play = minor role
each wants the best minor role. Ont
of them wouldn't play q seven lin,
part il the other had been cast for
ten liner"
do you engage those who pay 20,
best2"
VERY often, but not always b,
any means. AS you see, in this bool
some names have no amounts SO
opposite RtheA. Those are the APP
plioants who are willing to go on 70
nothing, but don't pay nae for letting
them act. The others are willing {,
pay me per week the amounts oppO
site their names. You might thinl
chat those who aren't willing to pa,
me stand no show of being sen
for But that's not the case
Often some among them may b,
so pretty and 80 bright looking that
take them for small parts which don
| raouira h.nJsn-.n Jra,a;nU Thna.